Barriss Offee - Puppet of the Sith V2
by norik956
Summary: Ahsoka Tano left the Order after being framed for horrible crimes. The one responsible was her best friend Barriss Offee. Barriss' interrogation will now take place. At request of the Senate, to avoid repeating previous errors, this will be broadcasted live for all to see. What dark truths will this reveal? A new version of my first story on fanfiction
1. Chapter 1

**Barriss Offee, Puppet of the Sith, V2**

 **I stopped writing for a few months due to some personal issues. In order to get back into my stories, I wanted to revisit the existing chapters of my two main stories featuring Ahsoka and Barriss. I decided to start with this story, the first story that I uploaded on Fanfiction.**

 **I'll be uploading this new version of the story on both Fanfiction and Archive of our Own. I made a account on Archive a while ago, but only posted my story Warnings from Yourself on there. I intend to put more of my stories on there in the future.**

 **Hope you enjoy.**

 **;-**

 _Several days after the confession of Barriss Offee_

Coruscant prison, isolation chambers

"Good afternoon Coruscant, I am Mira Calette for the Coruscant Archive, your station for the most actual news of the planet and beyond," a black-haired, human news reporter says to her live crowd. "As requested by the senate, we are standing just outside the prison cell of the notorious traitor Jedi Padawan Barriss Offee. The senate wanted her interrogation to be broadcasted live over the holonet so everyone could know what really happened the past few days and so that, uhm, errors, like those with the trial of Ahsoka Tano are not repeated. It will begin in just a few moments."

The camera panned around to show the cell and the other individuals waiting just outside it. Apart from the reporter, three others were present, not counting the clone guards on duty. One was Jedi Knight Anakin Skywalker, whose Padawan Ahsoka Tano had been framed by the traitor Offee. Although, after her name was cleared, she seemed to have vanished of off Coruscant. The second man here was Admiral Tarkin, who had lead the investigation and following trial against the wrongfully accused Ahsoka Tano. It was not really a secret that many people were wondering why he wasn't being investigated himself for the obvious flaws in the investigation and trial. But that wasn't what was being discussed now.

The last person there was Jedi Master Luminara Unduli, who had been the Master of the traitor Offee. There had been some question on whether or not she would have been the right person for this job, but the Jedi Council had assured that she would be objective. Also, with her long history to the fallen Jedi, she might have a better chance at getting more answers out of Offee.

The two Jedi didn't really betray much emotions in their faces, although there was a glint of anger in Skywalker's eyes. Tarkin just seemed annoyed that he had to be here for this.

"Master Unduli, may I ask you for your opinion on this matter? After all, wasn't the traitor Offee your Padawan?"the human reporter asked.

Luminara turned to the woman and answered in her usual calm and collected manner. "Tell me miss Calette…"

The reporter interrupted: "Please master Jedi, call me Mira."

"Very well Mira," Master Unduli continued, "Do you have any children?"

Somewhat perplexed by her answer the reporter said: "yes, as a matter of fact I do. Why do you ask?"

"How would you feel if one of your children suddenly and without warning committed such a violent act and then tried to frame her best friend for her actions?" came Master Unduli's reply. "We Jedi may now have families, but we do have strong bonds with our apprentices. Barriss has been my padawan for years and over this time she has grown closer to me." Luminara turned to face the reporter and her camera, the Jedi Master's face obviously saddened. "Barriss is like a daughter to me, to see her like this it hurts tremendously." Luminara sighed, "I still remember the quiet young girl who wanted nothing more than to become a skilled healer so she could prevent other from feeling pain. Now however, she has inflicted so much pain and sorrow on others, including her best friend. It just doesn't fit her." Luminara turned away again and took a few steps forward, staring at wall. "Is this my fault? Could I have prevented this somehow? Why couldn't I see that she was troubled so much?" She asked, mostly to herself.

"Master Unduli, this was not your fault." Anakin tried to assure her.

She turned to face him. "Perhaps it was, perhaps it wasn't, but that does not make me feel any better about this whole situation," came her quiet reply. Anakin didn't respond and cast his gaze towards the floor.

"if I may interject…" Admiral Tarkin said, "it is time to interrogate the traitor. Whether or not you feel guilty of her actions does not make the situation any different."

Both Jedi looked at Tarkin, Luminara with a neutral gaze while Anakin seemed to have some difficulty hiding his frustration with the man responsible for everything that happened to Ahsoka. Just thinking back and seeing her walk away down the steps of the temple stabbed him in the heart. " _I hope that you're safe Snips, wherever you are now_ ," he thought to himself.

"Very well Admiral, we will begin with the interrogation," Luminara finally spoke up, "However I will be doing the questioning. Barriss, at this time, is still a member of the Order and my Padawan".

Tarkin opened his mouth to object but Anakin cut him off: "I agree with master Unduli, you've done more than enough already Admiral." He said the last word in such a way that Tarkin realized he had no choice but to accept.

"All right then," he responded, "let's begin".

Anakin gave the guards a sign and they deactivated the security shield. Anakin, Luminara, Tarkin and the reporter with her camera entered the cell. Luminara approached Barriss while the reporter took great care to remain near the other end of the cell.

Barriss Offee was sitting on the bench in the cell, her hands chained together with Force-suppressing cuffs , an unreadable expression on her features. "Barriss?" Luminara asked. There was no reply.

"Barriss, look at me." Luminara said in a stricter tone of voice. Hesitantly, Barriss looked up. Her masters first question was an obvious one. "Why did you do this Barriss? How could you murder innocent civilians and clones? Your fellow Jedi, one of your oldest friends?". Luminara asked, her voice slightly trembling.

Barriss seemed a bit distant before answering: "I did it to make a statement. The Jedi Order has lost its way. We have become warmongers instead of peacekeepers. We have fallen from our purpose and are on our way to becoming nothing more than our enemies," she said in a cold voice.

Luminara responded: "I don't believe this Barriss. This isn't like you, if you had problems with the Order you should have discussed them with me. You should have talked to me." Luminara went on, her voice slightly louder and more emotional than normal. "You wanted to be a healer and save people, now you've become a terrorist, a murderer."

"We are all murderers, you just fail to see it!" Barriss responded in a harsh tone.

"Barriss, we are trying to restore the peace to the Republic," Luminara continued, hoping to find something of the old Barriss in the stranger now sitting before her. "And why, of all the people, would you want to try to frame Ahsoka for your actions? She was your closest friend! How can you justify doing such a thing?"

Barriss gazed her view away from her master before responding: "Because it was convenient."

The shock on the faces of both Jedi was obvious to see. Anakin wanted to yell at Barriss for her brutal words, but restrained himself somehow. Luminara moved closer to her fallen Padawan and kneeled in front of her. "Barriss, I don't believe you. What happened? Why are you doing this?" she asked, her voice trembling with sadness.

"Haven't you been paying attention to what I just said?" Barriss responded in a cold voice, locking eyes with her upset master. "This war happened and made us all a bunch of common murderers instead of the glorious peacekeepers the Jedi were in an era now long past."

Luminara placed her hands on Barriss' shoulders and managed to speak in a calm voice. "I was listening to you, my Padawan, but this still does not explain your actions." Barriss turned her head away from her master when she said "my Padawan". Luminara placed her hands on Barriss' neck and tried gently to turn her head towards her with her thumbs. "Barriss please look at me, I …", Luminara interrupted herself, feeling something unusual around Barriss' neck. "Barriss, what is this?"

Luminara moved her hands around the odd chain and pulled it up to reveal a strange, bronze-colored necklace inlaid with several gemstones. "When and where did you get this?" she asked.

Barriss responded confused: "where did I get what?"

"Wait a minute…", Anakin spoke up, "I've seen a necklace like that before". Before anyone could respond he raised his arm sharply and used the force to yank the necklace from Barriss' neck into his open hand. The moment the necklace was pulled away from her Barriss' eyes rolled in the back of her head and she collapsed backwards. "Barriss!" Luminara exclaimed as she caught the girl.

Anakin was staring in disbelief and anger at the necklace now in his hand. "General Skywalker, what is the deal with that necklace and what happened to Offee?" Tarkin asked sharply.

"Like I said... " Anakin began, "I've seen a necklace like this before."

"Where?" Luminara asked, turning slightly towards him but not taking her eyes of her now unconscious apprentice.

Anakin continued: "This is a mind-control necklace, similar to the one used by the Separatists to control the ruler of the Gungans when they tried to invade Naboo! Someone was controlling her!" The others in the room gasped in shock and everyone was quiet.

Then a soft moan broke the silence, Barriss was regaining consciousness. Luminara immediately turned to face her completely. "Barriss, can you hear me?" she asked.

Barriss took a moment to regain her senses before reacting confused and panicked. "Master? What is going on? What happened? Why am I in a cell? What is this?"

Luminara lightly grabbed her head and made her Padawan look at her. "Barriss, tell me right now, what is the last thing you remember?"

Barriss, still confused and panicked, tried to recall something and then answered: "I went out do to a little shopping while you attended the late night council meeting about the war in the outer rim."

"Barriss, that happened almost fifteen days ago…" came Luminara's response.

Barriss looked at her master in utter shock, barely able to respond. "What happened?" she asked quietly.

Anakin responded: "This won't be easy to hear, so I won't try to soften it. You, or rather whoever was controlling you, used you to commit a terrorist bombing on the Jedi temple, killing civilians, clones and Jedi. Then an accomplice of the assault was murdered while Ahsoka was interrogating her, causing just about everyone to believe that she was the mastermind behind it. Ahsoka tried to escape the prison but someone murdered several clones. Ahsoka was framed for the entire scheme, captured by clone troopers, expelled from the Jedi Order and almost sentenced to death by the Senate." By now Anakin's face was red with anger and frustration and Barriss was shocked and speechless. A silence took hold of the room.

"But… Ahsoka, were… Is she…?" Barriss managed to ask, a horrified expression appearing on her face.

Luminara answered her question: "Anakin captured you and brought you to the court and you confessed before they were able to sentence Ahsoka. She was cleared from all of the charges shortly after…"

"So, she is safe? She's back at the temple, isn't she?" Barriss asked hopefully. A small smile was forming on her face but it quickly disappeared when she saw Anakin's face.

"No." he began, "Ahsoka was offered to be reinstated as a Jedi Knight, but she refused and left the order. I have no idea where she is now." Anakin spoke in a depressed voice.

Barriss was looking in utter disbelief, tears forming in her eyes. "Barriss, please don't cry…" Luminara began, but was interrupted by Barriss, now in tears: "How can I not cry? I just murdered a group of innocent people and my fellow Jedi! I destroyed the life of my only true friend! I… I…" Unable to continue Barriss broke down into tears and Luminara hugged her Padawan trying to comfort her.

"Barriss, it wasn't you. Someone was controlling you with this infernal necklace." Barriss looked up and Anakin showed her the necklace while asking her where she got it from.

"I don't know…" she responded weakly.

"Barriss, did anything happen when you returned to the temple after you went shopping? Did you see anything strange at all? Try to remember." Anakin told her.

"I…" Barriss began, her voice still shaking with sorrow. "There…There was someone…" "Who?" Luminara asked her. "I don't know. There was a man in a black robe at the end of an alley. Then… Then there was pain." Barriss answered, looking down at her arms in fear.

Anakin moved to her and rolled up her sleeves. Everyone gasped at the state of her arms. "Burn marks, these burn marks are consistent with Force Lightning." Anakin managed to say through his shock.

"I… Who… What…happened…I don't…." Barriss was unable to respond properly anymore and was in complete shock.

Luminara hugged her close and used the Force to undo her binds. "Enough, rest easy now Barriss. I'm taking you back to the temple, you're safe now." She said trying to comfort her crying Padawan as she began to escort her out of the cell.

"Just a moment Master Jedi, you can't just…" Tarkin spoke up but was effectively silenced by Luminara's hand connected hard with his face.

"You be quiet, Admiral!" she snarled at him. Tarkin stood by in disbelief as the Jedi Master and her Padawan exited the cell, followed by a slightly stunned reporter who wasn't sure if she should laugh or not.

Anakin went out next, followed by Tarkin. But before the Admiral could leave Anakin pushed a switch next to the door and activated the ray shield, thus locking Tarkin in the cell.

"General Skywalker what are you doing?!" Tarkin asked, his voice holding a slight shock and frustration after just being slapped by Luminara.

"Oh I'm sorry Admiral," Anakin said in a mocking tone, "I must have hit the wrong switch. Here let me fix it." After he said that he took his lightsaber with his free hand and quickly destroyed the control panel of the cell. Tarkin and the reporter stood by in disbelief. "Oh no, it broke. Sorry Admiral, but you know how it can go with equipment like this. Door controls, _cameras_ , sometimes they just break down without warning." He said looking Tarkin right in his eyes.

"WHAT ARE YOU DOING?" Tarkin was yelling now, obviously enraged.

Anakin slightly chuckled to himself before replying in a calm voice: "You just tried to have two innocent girls executed and you never even apologized. I think that you need some time to reflect on your actions. But don't worry, I'll send a maintenance worker here just as soon as they're done in the Temple. Could take a few days at most." Anakin turned and began to walk away, unable to hide the small smile on his face.

"THIS IS AN OUTRAGE! I DEMAND YOU GET ME OUT OF HERE AT ONCE!" Tarkin was yelling now.

"Sorry Admiral, I'm a little busy right now." Was the only response he got.

"General Skywalker, what are you going to do now?" The reporter asked him after she caught up with him. He held up the necklace and said: "I'm going to find whoever made this and then I'm going to make them tell me who they are working with and who they are working for. After that they'll pay for their crimes."

"Meaning you're going to arrest them and bring to here to stand trial?" she asked.

"Yes, that's correct, unless I have no other choice.". Anakin replied and walked away. _"Or I might just forget that I am a Jedi for a few moments…"_ He thought to himself and he made his way to the exit, all the while ignoring Admiral Tarkins furious yelling.

"Well my viewers, this has been a wild day to say the least. Padawan Barriss Offee turned out to be just as much a victim here as Ahsoka Tano was. Who knows what this poor young woman has suffered through. It's horrible that two young women like them almost took the fall for someone who is obviously too cowardly to do his own dirty work. I hope that they both recover from this tragedy. This was Mira Caletta for the Coruscant Archive, good day." The reporter said in conclusion to the wild interrogation and shut down her camera.

;-

 _ **Meanwhile, on Onderon, Residence of Senator Bonteri.**_

 _This was Mira Caletta for the_ Coruscant Archive _, good day_

A Togrutan teen had been following the live interrogation. Now, there was a small smile on her face and a few tears of joy running down her face. "Skyguy, you never change, do you?" She took a deep breath. " Oh Barriss, I knew you would never do something like this," she said quietly.

"Ahsoka, are you alright?" A male voice behind her asked.

"Yeah, Lux I'm alright." She replied with a smile.

"Alright then, I'm going to bed. There are a couple of things that I have to take care of tomorrow," Lux said while moving next to her and placing his hand on her shoulder.

"Lux…?" Ahsoka began, "Do you… Would you mind I if slept in your room tonight? I… I don't want to be alone right now," she asked blushing slightly in a quiet voice.

An equal blush quickly spread over the young senators face. "Uh… Of course. That…That is uhm… If you're alright with that…" He stuttered out.

A smile appeared on Ahsoka's face as she stood up, gave him a light kiss on the cheek and hugged him. "Thank you Lux, for everything you've done these past few days."

"Of course Ahsoka, anything for you." He turned off the TV and they made their way to the master bedroom.

 **;-**

 **That's the end of this chapter.**

 **I'm going to work on updating the second chapter of this story next. After that, I'm going to work on the chapters for my two main stories 'A New Beginning – Tale of a Togruta' and 'Starting Over – A Mirialan's Story'.**

 **I'm going to keep the original version of Puppet of the Sith up on Fanfiction, but I'll be replacing the older chapters of both my other stories with the newer versions as soon as they are done. These new versions will also be posted on Archive of our Own. There won't be many changes in the main story, I'll mainly be updating the format and fixing some errors. I might add some things here and there, but they'll just be additions to those scenes. If there is a reason for a major change, I'll make sure to post a little notice in the newest chapters.**

 **Until next time.**


	2. Chapter 2 - Back in the Temple

**Puppet of the Sith Chapter 2 V2 – Back in the Temple**

 **Second chapter of Puppet of the Sith, Barriss is back in the Temple, trying to deal with everything that happened.**

 **Hope you enjoy.**

;-

 _ **Coruscant, Jedi Temple, several days later**_

Barriss Offee was sitting cross-legged in her quarters, trying to meditate. She tried to clear her mind but it was turning out to be a lot more difficult than she had imagined. Even as a youngling she had never struggled this much with meditation. With a frustrated groan she moved and leaned back against her bed.

So many things had happened these past few weeks. After she had recovered somewhat from the shock, Master Unduli had begun to fill her in on everything that had happened during the gap in her memory. She still had difficulties with accepting the fact that she had fallen under the control of a Sith and that she had committed such horrible crimes.

She had seen the reports of the damage and all of the lives that had been lost. Her Master had assured her that she hadn't been responsible for what happened, but that didn't really ease all of her guilt. It had been her hands that set everything in motion. So many had died. Worst of all, she had almost gotten her best friend executed.

Thinking about Ahsoka reminded her about what happened two days ago. The mind-control necklace Anakin freed her from was being transported to a secure facility so it could be investigated. However, before it could reach its destination, a bounty-hunter destroyed the transport and the necklace with it. This resulted in a wild chase that was being broadcasted all over Coruscant. In the end the bounty-hunter took his own life before he could be captured. Barriss shivered slightly remembering the extreme amount of anger she had felt coming from Anakin afterwards.

She had overheard Master Windu and Master Yoda talking about the bounty-hunter.

"What kind of loyalty would make someone take their own lives rather than being captured?" Master Windu had asked. There was a short silence before Master Yoda replied: "Loyalty? Perhaps, but fear, fear can make one who lives below a slave to one living in the highest tower."

Barriss sat up and hugged her knees to her chest. "What kind of evil could inspire such fear in another?" she asked herself. The answer was already known to her. The black robed Sith that did all of this. She wasn't able to remember much about the Sith nor could she recall if she had seen his face or anything else that could have identified him. But, at the same time she was glad that she had no memories of being tortured by one corrupted by the Dark Side.

She stretched her legs and leaned back against the bed, looking at her arms that were now mostly covered in bacta-patches. Her visit to the Halls of Healing had revealed more burns over the rest of her body, as well as a number of bruises on her back caused by a hard impact. That last one was from Anakin slamming her into that tree after he had unmasked 'her'. She didn't really mind that pain. It felt deserved, in some ways.

A large group of Jedi, including a few members of the council, had expressed concerns that she might succumb to the Dark Side now. She was glad that her master had stood up for her. Barriss relaxed a bit and a small smile spread on her face. Attachment was against the Jedi Code, but she had always thought her master to be more than just her master. The two of them had shared a lot of hardships but they were always able to pull through the seemingly impossible.

Her eyes wandered across the room until she saw the picture frame on her nightstand. She called it towards her with the Force, smiling as she remembered when it was taken. It was a picture of her and Ahsoka, taken shortly after the brain worms incident. Ahsoka had insisted that before they left the med bay and parted ways, they'd take a picture to remember to crazy adventure they shared on and after Geonosis. Barriss had told her that she'd remember it anyway, but Ahsoka's stubbornness won in the end.

Barriss put the picture down beside her and asked to no one in particular: "Where did you go Ahsoka? Why did you have to leave?" She sighed and the same feeling of guilt and she had been feeling for days came rushing back. "Could I have resisted the Sith someway? Would you still have been here then?" Quieting her mind like she had been trying became impossible. Her thoughts drifted to Ahsoka and the adventures they had shared. She was thinking of possible ways of how things could have worked out, ways that would have made sure that Ahsoka had stayed. But she didn't, she left. "I hope you're safe Ahsoka, wherever you are…" She said out loud, hoping her lost friend would be able to hear her. Right now all she wanted to do was locate Ahsoka and find some way to apologize to her, to make things right again. She thought to herself: " _Would master Unduli allow me to go search for her or…."_

The ringing of the doorbell interrupted her thoughts. She reluctantly got up and made her way towards the door. She opened the door and saw that it was Katooni, one of the younglings Ahsoka had accompanied during the Gathering. "Hello Padawan Offee," Katooni began, slightly nervous.

Barriss wondered for a moment why she was nervous, but quickly recalled what Anakin had told her. Katooni and a group of other younglings had seen her possessed self trying to kill Anakin. "Don't worry initiate Katooni, I'm not going to hurt you or anyone else. That wasn't me back then and that will never be me." Barriss told the young girl, hoping to calm her down a bit. It seemed to work as she could feel Katooni relaxing through the Force.

"A package was delivered for you a short while ago. I was asked to deliver it to you," she said holding out the box she had in her hands. "I see, thank you Katooni," Barriss replied giving the girl a small nod. Katooni bowed slightly and walked away.

Barriss shut the door and went to sit down on her bed, placing the box beside her. It was a secured package carrying the Senate logo. It made her wonder who in the Senate would send her anything. She opened the box and her eyes went wide in shock. "My…My lightsaber…" she said softly, taking her weapon from the box. "How did this…?" Looking back in the box she noticed a letter. She picked it up and began to read.

" _Barriss,_

 _Master Unduli gave me this before I left. She wanted it to keep me safe, but I think that you'll need it more than I do._

 _I saw your interrogation on the holonet. I'm sorry that you had to go through all of that. I was glad to see that you really were innocent. I knew you weren't capable of doing such awful things._

 _By now, you'll have heard that I have left the temple. Don't blame yourself for it, I just need to sort things out on my own right now. I'm not sure what I'm going to do now or where I'm going to end up, but I just wanted you to know that I forgive you Barriss._

 _I hope that we'll see each other again someday. Until that day, may the Force be with you, Barriss._

 _Your friend, always_

 _Ahsoka"_

By now, a few tears were rolling down her cheeks. Ahsoka had already forgiven her. She wasn't even sure how to apologize but she was already forgiven. "You never change Ahsoka, thank you…"

Barriss then noticed another small part under the message.

" _PS: could you PLEASE tell Skyguy to stop worrying so much? I'm fine and in no danger at all. I'm not planning on doing anything stupid. And yet I can still sense his worries even though I'm light-years away. It's sweet, but it's also giving me a massive headache."_

Her friend's final comment made her laugh. When she wanted to put the box away she noticed that there was one more thing inside. There was a picture in there as well. It was a picture of the two of them, taken at Dex's Diner, a few days before this whole mess started.

The guilt she had felt started to fade away as she thought of what Ahsoka would be doing now if she were standing in her shoes. The answer was an obvious one: She'd be tracking whoever was responsible with Anakin, determined to make them pay for everything that happened.

One thing still bothered her a bit. Ahsoka had sent her letter in a Senatorial envelop. Who helped her with this? She was close with senator Amidala and senator Chuchi, but they were both here on Coruscant and Ahsoka had left the planet. Barriss went down a mental list of senators Ahsoka had been around until one name caught her attention. "Lux Bonteri… Of course, so that's where you went," she said aloud. It was obvious that to her that her Togruta friend had a thing for the human senator, no matter how much she'd try to deny it. Barriss hadn't been able to resist teasing her about it.

Barriss smiled to herself, her confidence restored and her guilt gone for now. She carefully placed both pictures on her nightstand and put her lightsaber back on her belt. It was about time that she tried put the past behind her and look towards the future. Master Unduli had kept her as a Padawan and she wasn't going to let her master down. She hadn't done so before and she wasn't planning on starting now.

She left her quarters to go find her master and continue her training. Her master had forgiven her, Anakin had forgiven and Ahsoka had forgiven her as well. Now she had to work on forgiving herself.

It was time to start over. It is time for a new beginning.

 **;-**

 **That's the end of this chapter.**

 **I'm going to work on updating the chapters of Tale of a Togruta and A Mirialan's Story next. As soon as I have one finished, I'll replace the existing chapter on Fanfiction and also post it on Archive of our Own.**

 **I still have more planned for these stories and I have several other ideas for my other stories, as well as new ones, so once I fully get back into writing, I'll hopefully be posting a lot more again.**

 **Until next time.**


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